Alternative Medicine

Krill oil is made from krill, a small, shrimp-like crustacean that inhabits the cold ocean areas of the world. Despite their small size, krill make up the largest animal biomass on the planet. There are approximately 500 million tons of krill roaming around in northern seas.Krill oil, like fish oil, contains omega-3 fats such as eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) and docosahexanoic acid (DHA). However, in fish oil, these omega-3 fats are found in the triglyceride form. In krill oil, they are found in a double-chain phospholipid structure. The fats in human cell walls are in the phospholipid form.The phospholipid structure of the EPA and DHA in krill oil makes them much more absorbable. Krill oil also contains vitamin E, vitamin A, vitamin D, and canthaxanthin, which is a potent antioxidant.The antioxidant potency of krill oil is, in terms of ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorptance Capacity) values, 48 times more potent than fish oil.

Individuals who suffer from severe chronic pain are caught in a double bind. Opioids contribute to the enormous societal harms of unintentional overdose, diversion and addiction, and data on their long-term effectiveness are conflicting and inadequate (Chou R, Turner JA, Devine EB, et al. The effectiveness and risks of long-term opioid therapy for chronic pain: a systematic review for a National Institutes of Health pathways to prevention workshop. Ann Intern Med. Published online Jan. 13, 2015 doi:10.7326/M14-2559). But for patients who are helped by opioids, policies and regulations to address societal harms are, in some cases, impeding access to treatment, making it difficult even to find a knowledgeable physician. The need for safer and more effective analgesics has never been greater.

Answers do not lie in pitting one serious disease (i.e., chronic pain) against another (i.e., addiction) but in seeking scientific breakthroughs that lead to serious analgesic benefits without addictive properties or risk for respiratory depression. Rigorous research of cannabinoids has the potential to unlock a medicinal benefit on a societal scale. But committing to the necessary research requires rethinking how we classify cannabinoids as a controlled substance.

Public attitudes toward marijuana have changed considerably in recent years. Voters and legislators in 23 states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana, and nationwide polls show that most Americans now support legalization.But the nation’s medical organizations – while intrigued about the potential for marijuana to treat conditions like chronic pain – have been slow to embrace cannabis. And most doctors still refuse to prescribe it, even in states where marijuana is legal.Those conflicting attitudes were on display last week at the annual meeting of the American Pain Society (APS) in Palm Springs, California – a conference focused on pain research. Although the APS has no stated policy on marijuana, the organization chose as its keynote speaker one of the most prominent medical marijuana researchers in the world, Dr. Mark Ware.“I’ve done presentations and sessions, and it always surprises people how much interest there is,” said Ware, who is a family physician and associate professor in Family Medicine and Anesthesia at McGill University in Montreal. “Cannabis gives people a window to come and learn, and while they’re learning about medical cannabis they can be learning about pain management and other things. It’s a very useful magnet to get people interested in a topic that’s obviously of enormous public importance.”

The Twenty-Three States and One Federal District With Effective Medical Marijuana Laws

Twenty-three U.S. states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws that remove criminal sanctions for the medical use of marijuana, define eligibility for such use, and allow some means of access — either through dispensaries, home cultivation, or both. In addition, several states have laws that recognize the medical benefits of medical marijuana — or at least certain strains — but that do not actually provide access to medical marijuana due to federal law or policies.